Vets--at what point did you start eating your "now-sized" portions?

I am 8 months out this week and am just curious when you started eating your now-sized portions.  I see some vets say they eat about a cup of food per meal or 4 oz of protein and a few vegetable, etc.  How far out were you when you started eating that size of a portion? 

I ask because we went out to celebrate last night and ate at a hibachi place.  I ate a few bites of salad and maybe 1/3 of the protein/veggie mixture (probably 3/4 of a cup).  I am just concerned that my pouch can hold that much at 8 months out.  Don't get me wrong, I was definitely full and probably wouldn't have quite that much again anytime soon (I was a bit uncomfortable), but does that seem crazy?  Were you a lot further out when you started eating the portion sizes you do now?

Thanks!

At about 12 months out, BUT portion sizes can vary GREATLY depending on the density of what you are eating.  I can eat a very large amount of crab meat, but can still only eat about 3-4 ounces of filet mignon or tuna (and I am coming up on 6 years out).  I can eat a large portion of green beans, watermelon, and berries, but can eat less than half that amount of broccoli or apples.

Lora

Like Lora, it depends on what I am eating as to how much I can stomach. Just remember if you hurt, you probably ate too much or too fast or both. 

For me it was about year 3.

Like Laura said, it varies based on the food you are eating.

For example, I can eat a whole plate of salad probably two cups of lettuce with veggies, beans and whatever else I throw on there. If someone were to watch me eat a salad, they would never in a million years imagine I had RNY

I can eat a whole egg McMuffin, 6 inch turkey sandwich from Subway no problem.

But there are a few things that consistently make me miserable.

Number one offender is rice I can only eat a few bites of it because about 20 min after I eat it, I feel like my pouch will explode and it gets super tight and uncomfortable

Pasta is a close second to that. If the pouch pain isn't enough to keep me away, the HORRIBLE carb coma that I get afterwards usually steers me away.

And third would be meat. I can only eat maybe 2-3 oz of solid protein like grilled chicken at a time because it make me so full and uncomfortable feeling.

For me being a "scarfer" pre-op, I had to learn to slow down and chew my food but old habits die hard and I still scarf my food sometimes. I did it last week at dinner I inhaled my food in about 5 min completely mindlessly and felt like absolute crap afterwards.  I had planned to take a walk after dinner, but I made myself so sick I couldn't do anything except lay on the couch and wait for the pain to pass. 

Best wishes to you :)

Hmm...probably about a year / year and a half post-op? If you're worried about quantity, listen to your body. I try to put my fork down in between bites and eat very slowly so I can feel it when my pouch is getting full. As long as you pay attention and stick to your protein and veggies first, you'll be in good shape.

And yes, it definitely depends on the type of food. 4-5 oz. of chicken is very, very filling, but the same amount of plain yogurt is easy to get down. To me, it sounds like you're in a good place intake-wise, but even if you were eating a little more I'd think you'd be just fine. Bodies, pouches, and metabolisms are all different.

I USE  a small cereal bowl that equals 1 cup.  I can eat a stewed beef, chicken soup, tuna salad etc.  I try to get as much protein as possible, then in about two hours I want something to eat again and I have fruit or SF Jello.  When I am really busy I eat much less and need a bedtime snack.  That is often a very thin slice of whole grain, artisan bread, toasted with a tablespoon of peanut butter.